Let’s Talk about Gardening!

By LadyAnis on Apr 15, 2009 | Reply

Don’t worry. you can start your hobby without taking any course. go to the flower nursery and ask them for an advice.

By Rugger on Apr 18, 2009 | Reply

Well a good place to start is to consider the location. Do you have acres of room or just a little? Is it exposed to sunlight most of the day, or shade? Sunlight exposure is important, and the amount you will need depends on what you want to grow (seed packets will usually tell you the sun requirements on the back.) Also, the composition of the soil is important. You don’t want something that is too sandy, and you don’t want something that is too “clay.” The best is a mixture of the two, called “loam.” If you have less-than-stellar soil, there are ways to fix it, however. Also, it’s a good idea to get nutrients test (they are cheap) that will tell you what your soil lacks in nutrients that are essential to plants.
I hope this will help get you started. There are alot of gardening books out there that will give you all the information you need. Gardening is a learned art…I’ve been doing it for seven years and I still haven’t perfected it! So good luck and have fun

By macerally on Apr 20, 2009 | Reply

I just got some magazines articles on gardening when I first started. They were helpful for advise. Do some research on the internet for your area. It is best to know what you can and can not grow for your area. I live in the north and have a shorter growing season so I do not waste my time on melons and warm weather loving things. Just plant veggies you will use. I grow zuchini and summer squash , onions and tomatoes. Lots of tomatoes. My neighbors have better luck with peppers than I do so we trade. Start small and work up to a bigger one.

By Kimberly C on Apr 21, 2009 | Reply

Hi:
I am a landscaper and designer. When starting any garden the best way to approach it is through planning, prepping and planting. I have used this approach with evey client. Plan your entire first, make sure your properly prepare the ground and plant. Know the maturity of your vegetables. I will link you to the plan - prep - plant page of my website. There may be some information that may help you.

Prepping is critical for healthy plants. If you have a large enough area, go ahead a till the area. You can work the soil several times. Organic mushroom compost is great for vegetables. It is an organic fertilizer that will last up to one year. It doesn’t smell great, but your veggies will love it!

Make sure you water properly and you can add some pine straw or mulch to your garden. This will help retain the moisture in the ground. I will link you to the Vegetable garden page of the site. It talks about a combination of veggies, herbs and flowers. This is another option for you. Herbs are wonderful to put over fresh vegetables.

I will also link you to the site map, as this page has everything that is on the website. Browse through as there are many articles, tips and technique that may offer some suggestions for you in doing your vegetable garden. Good luck to you and have a great day!
Kimberly

By ManitouLisa on Apr 21, 2009 | Reply

Dive in and learn along the way. We kept a garden when I was a child. That gave me confidence to start. If you make mistakes, you only learn from them. Over the years my knowledge has grown.

To increase my knowledge I subscribed to gardening magazines and looked at many web sites. Currently, I’m in a horticulture course with the RHS (Royal Horticulture Society). The course is fab.

Good luck.

Some of the web sites below are for the UK and some for North America. All have information which would help a gardener no matter where they lived.

By getting better on Apr 22, 2009 | Reply

This is my first time gardening too…

and my advice is DON’T overwater!! lol

Obvoiusly I did, and killed all my seedlings! OOps. I am going to try again.

By crossstitchkelly on Apr 24, 2009 | Reply

Start out small and work your way up. Some plants, like zucchini, are overproducers, so don’t plant more than you and anyone you want to give away to need (One small package of seeds should be fine).

Some plants, like bell peppers and tomatoes, are best grown from plants, but get them from somewhere you can trust. Plants from Wal-Mart are usually pretty low quality, plus the employees don’t take care of them very well. Check with other people you know & see if there’s a greenhouse they like. Lowe’s is also known for having pretty good plants.

When you buy tomato or pepper plants, try to get ones that look healthy to start with. And if the tomato plants are leggy (tall and thin), try to find ones that are a little more compact (it may have to do with the type of tomato, though). And if they’re very tall, you can plant them as deep as the little bumps on the stem go up–those are roots, and they’ll grow and anchor the plant. Also, we found that you can put down black plastic on the ground, then cut small x’s in it and put the plants in there–it cuts down on weeding (and you will need to do a lot of it, otherwise).

Pay attention to the instructions on the seed packets–they’ll tell about when to plant. There is usually a map on the packet, and it will show which zone is which. They’ll also tell how long it takes for the plants to mature–you might want to mark your calendar to keep track. Also, keep the seed packets and mark the rows with them (stick them on a popsicle stick or something at the end of the row). That will help you remember which row has what in it.

Like I said, start slow–my first recent experience was when my husband planted a garden the way he used to. He planted 120 tomato plants, 60 pepper plants, and 18 rows of green beans, among other things, for just the two of us and our extended families. We were taking out bushel baskets of food twice weekly, and taking most of it to work, just giving it away.

By debnettlenote on Apr 25, 2009 | Reply

the most important advice I could give anyone about gardening is “don t be afraid to try” and “do experiment” everything in gardening is trial and error we learn from our accomplishments and our mistakes and also have fun enjoy . . .